New Posting: Conceptual Framework Question
Hello Everyone! I have read through all of your comments and have to tell you that your descriptions make me even more excited to visit you, your classrooms, and the towns you're in. It appears that everyone is settling in and really enjoying your students. I very much look forward to seeing you "in action" and meeting your students and mentor teachers.
We'd like to ask that you reply to this next post by Friday, the 26th. Also, please respond to at least one of your fellow student's responses.
BACKGROUND:
The conceptual framework that guides our teacher preparation programs states the following:
"The College of Education contributes to the theory and practice of the broad field of education, and dedicates itself to understanding and respecting learners in diverse cultural contexts. We facilitate engaged learning and ethical leadership in schools and clinical settings. We seek collaboration with diverse constituencies, recognizing our local and global responsibilities to communities, environments, and future generations."
QUESTION:
In what ways has your preparation at WSU helped you to enact various aspects of the conceptual framework? How do your student teaching experiences connect to the framework? What aspects of the framework are becoming most meaningful to you?
Chris and I both look forward to your responses. Best wishes, All! Cori
posted by Cori Mantle-Bromley @ 4:00 PM
16 comments
16 Comments:
My time at WSU has prepared me to enact the conceptual framework by generally exposing me to diversity in the classrooms. Not only have I had multiple opportunities to learn about diversity, leadership, and responsibility in the community, but also I have had many opportunities to experience the classroom first hand.
During my student teaching opportunities I have been able to see all aspects of the conceptual framework. The classroom is always diverse, with children of different cultural and socio-economical backgrounds. I have never been in a classroom where each child is exactly the same. That is unrealistic and would quite frankly be boring. With a combination of course work and field experience I feel that I have a good grasp on the diversity of the classroom and communities. It also has shown me how to facilitate engaged learning and leadership. Another way that my student teaching connects to the framework has to do with responsibility to the community. I have always known that there is or needs to be a strong connection between the classroom/school and the community. The children that are in the classroom come from the community and that alone is enough of a connection to make it important. It is important for the community to be involved in the classroom and the classroom to be involved in the community. One thing that I know is going to happen at the Elementary school in the next month or two is there is going to be a German community/culture day. There will be members of the German community who come in and do presentations as well as serve German food. It is extremely important for these children to learn about the culture because they are essentially living in a ‘little America’ while in another country. Many of them never really experience the culture so it is important for the school to bring it to them so that they can learn to appreciate the country they live in.
To me the most meaningful parts of the framework are the diversity and responsibility to the community. The classroom I am teaching in is extremely diverse with children coming from all over the world. It is so important to be aware of the diversity and to be respectful and responsive to each child’s differences. I have always felt that the connection to community is important but teaching on the army post has really solidified that for me. The children and teachers have a responsibility to the army community and the German community. I am looking forward to finding ways to incorporate both communities into my teaching.
I too have found the conceptual framework finding it's way into my classroom as I student teach here in Heidelberg.
WSU has given me the initial framework to begin to implement the conceptual framework ideas by providing the various theories as well as facts to the importanct of each part of the conceptual framework. For example, the class I took one summer on community involvement has definitely given me some spring boards to run with as far as relating the material to the world that the students live in and not just my world.
With the conceptual framework, a big piece has definitely been respecting and making accomodations for those students of different backgrounds. The children are not only diverse in regards to their parental incomes, but they're also diverse in their previous experiences. I have students from all parts of the states and they all bring in their own view points and previous knowledge from other teachers. This previous knowledge and experience definitely helps add to the dynamics of the classroom.
We also have a lot of parental interaction. This amount of parental involvement itself is overwhelming initially, but it is great because it provides a check and a balance on the students' academic progress.
There are also other various programs both associated with the school and not associated with the school that work with teachers and administration to provide extra opportunities for guided studying and extra tutoring. An example of this is the Lion's Den that is on PHV that offers after school activities and weekend outings as well as a tutoring center.
The last thing, is that we have been initiating engaged learning in a few ways. The first is by running a "discussion based" math class. That is, my mentor teacher and I facilitate discussions from time to time about where the math is applicable and what kind of places that math can be used in the real world. Also, the students are engaged because when they ask a question, we respond with a question that guides the. It allows the students to think for themselves but receive immediate positive feedback. Also, the students are encourage to get up and work out the problems and show off their own work. The kids love putting their work on the elmo or doing the problems on the smart board.
Therefore, the conceptual framework has found it's way into the classroom here in Heidelberg.
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My response to Fiona:
Fiona,
I just noticed how your favorite parts of the conceptual framework are the diversity and responsibility to the community. It is interesting how we all will find one part more preferential than the others. While I find these both important in the educational atmosphere, I find myself a bigger fan of engaged learning. In teaching High School, it is ultimately our goal to ensure that our students are independent thinkers as well as to help them pass that hump into the abstract thinking phase that we so cleverly learned about in our educational pyschology classes at WSU. So it's funny how not only will our communities, our own personality, and our mentors through the years have and will continue to affect our teaching and what we choose to emphasize, but so does the grade level. It's just interesting how the grade level we are teaching can change our outlook on what education should be offering our students. I believe that this is fully justified since high school students need different things out of their education as do elementary and middle school students. Yet, the idea that drives those goals is the same.
I believe the conceptual framework components are what drive my teaching and facilitation of a classroom. Diversity, engaging learners, and our responsibility to the community are the exact three concepts that are necessary to reach every student; not only in the state of Washington but overseas in the DODDs schools as well. Diversity is the center of our experience, with children from all areas of the world and socio-economic backgrounds. I believe these students have a great advantage in that they can learn from other children's experiences that may be very similar or far different than their own.
Using culture, diversity, and student lives within all subject areas helps to engage students in their education because they feel a sense of ownership over what they are learning. I have been able to implement diversity into nutrition, language arts, and Social Studies. We create student leadership and engagement by creating a "family" atmosphere in the classroom so that students are comfortable in their learning environment.
Families are encouraged to come into the classroom whenever possible. We have already had numerous parents in the class to teach a nutrition lesson, a sign language lesson, and this week one of the mother's will be teaching us how to speak some Greek.
I believe the conceptual framework theory includes the importance of reaching and engaging all levels of learners. Some ways that I have done this are small reading groups, writing at individual paces, and providing extra tutoring for lower-level students.
Peer Response:
I agree with Fiona when she talks about our experiences and field work that have helped us grasp the idea of diversity in the classroom. The experience that we are all getting over here is the most beneficial for learning about diverse learners, school, and community responsibilities. Each student has far more going on in their lives than many children in the states. We are not only here to support their academic experiences but to be life mentors, coaches and a support system.
I think that we have experienced the best and most diverse classrooms coming out of the education program. We are able to take the role as a teacher and leader in and out of the classroom.
First off, my student teaching experience has been absolutely amazing… but looking back at the question I find myself noticing that the conceptual framework has entered my classroom in multiple ways. I think the most important aspect that I am beginning to grasp is that all of my students are very diverse. I think being placed on a military base really helps with this because all of the students are from such different areas around the world. For example, I taught a lesson today in Geography that focused on Planet Earth, but more specifically, seasons that we experience and the severity of them. The section was discussing how winters in Alaska are so harsh that there is barely anytime during the day that it is light out. I have learned that my students love connecting with any sort of literature that we come across, and I use any chance to allow their different backgrounds to emerge. Two of my students are from Alaska in each block, which directly related to what we were researching. The two students were allowed to share their own experiences of what winter was like to them, and recollect about memories they have associated with winter in Alaska. This was a really good learning experience that allowed my students to think about what winter really might be like in Alaska.
I am also noticing that recognizing diversity and engaging students in learning is going hand-in-hand. I have realized that a lot of my students have military backgrounds of some sort, and I know nothing about the military at all, besides what I have learned thus far. We were working on a brainstorming activity where I wanted students to think about all the words they could associate with the word “military.” The idea was for them to get more specific in their details when they got further away from the military circle that was in the middle of the board. My students diverse backgrounds helped them fill out this brainstorming chart thoroughly. A lot of what I knew about the military wasn’t very specific, but what my students knew helped to fill in the blacks. In a way my students helped to teach me about the military, while I helped them understand how to properly brainstorm ideas. Students were engaged in this activity because they all had something to bring to the table, even some of the students that usually I struggle to reach were offering ideas to the student writing the ideas on the board. This example shows how the diversity of my students also keeps them involved in everyday lessons.
WSU gave me some sort of idea what it would be like to interact with parents in a school setting, but I really don’t think I would have expected parents to be this involved. I think that the parent and community involvement in this school is exceptional and almost intimidating to a new teacher. For example, my mentor teacher and I write weekly e-mails to update all parents on Monday’s of what has happened the week before and upcoming assignments that are due this week. In the last four week, mostly all of the parents respond with one question about assignments or concerns about their student. I have never worked at a school where all parents had e-mail… and checked it and responded on a daily basis.
Based on these observations in my classroom I think it is clear that conceptual framework is playing a key role in my learning and exploration as a new teacher.
It makes me proud to see how clearly and professionally you are all reflecting on your experiences and the preparation you've received. I can't imagine a better place to sharpen your skills related to diversity and community, as both are so present in your international placements. I think you are very fortunate to be able to experience such high levels of family and community engagement in the schools. Hopefully, you can take these experiences and use them to increase engagement if you find yourself teaching in a school that has less involvement.
I was glad to see use of students' backgrounds (e.g., Amber's use of students' home states in a geography lesson) to get students involved in the lesson. This really validates their experiences and backgrounds and is vital to strong identity development.
I appreciate Fiona's coupling of diversity and community. I've learned over time that the local community is an incredible resource in terms of my learning about the students' backgrounds. My best teachers of diversity issues are community members.
Talitha's discussion-based math sounds wonderful. Many (myself included) have never learned to talk about mathematics. I can "do" it (up to a point) but find myself without the vocabulary to talk about it intelligently. And I also am interested in Talitha's notion that the framework takes on different meanings based on level of teaching. I hadn't thought of that before.
And I agree with Carolyn that students who are in diverse classrooms have an advantage--they learn how to navigate multiple cultures in a way that will help them a great deal in the future.
I'll check in later, but want to thank you for such thoughtful responses to the post.
Carolyn,
I totally agree with you that diversity is the center of our experience; it is so amazing to be in a place where all students have such different backgrounds. I have found this to be a huge advantage when teachings in the classroom, all my students bring their own “flair” to the classroom. This month is Hispanic month; so, we read the story “Amigo Brothers,” which has many Spanish words and names used that I was not familiar with. However, one of the students in my class speaks Spanish fluently, and knowing this before hand, I was able to ask him for help in pronouncing words. This was a student, who usually doesn’t engage in class, and during this lesson he was totally engaged and excited, after all he was the expert. I also love that you mentioned the “family” atmosphere; I think my teacher and I have also created this in our classroom. It is so important to let the students know that they are in a safe environment that allows them to feel appreciated by their peers and teachers. We do a lot of sharing of ideas in my classroom, and after some of my students have shared their ideas we always clap to thank the students who shared because we know that a lot of students really struggle opening up to share personal experiences and answers that could potentially be wrong.
In my mind the conceptual framework is a description of the ideal teacher. This is what we have been going to school to do. We are now in charge of creating a meaningful opportunity for students educating future generations to become contributing citizens to both country and the world. We are supposed to connect with a diverse group of students without being biased and make their education meaningful. WSU has helped me form these clear objectives and goals and also given me the confidence to implement them.
Student teaching in Heidelberg has enabled me to practice and observe how culture and diversity play into a classroom. It is interesting to see the classroom dynamic because students come from throughout the United States. Though we are all Americans we come from surprisingly diverse backgrounds. In my classroom we encourage a lot of discussion and group work to help students connect and share their experiences with one another. This also gives students an opportunity to be leaders and help their classmates.
I feel “respecting learners in diverse cultural contexts” has become more meaningful to me with student teaching. I have several European students in my classroom and their educational system is very different. I am starting to see and observe the minor subtleties in how adapting to a new education system is difficult for students. With lots of these students it’s not just a language barrier getting in the way of learning it is a cultural one as well.
Amber you are totally right about the parent involvement in this school. I help out with the cross country team and the parents sow up to practice in groups. They also do a pasta feed every Friday before a meet. I have never seen so much food in one place before. Plus the majority of the parents show up! Its good to see such a community focused school.
In my experience at WSU the information taught in teaching and learning classes stemmed directly from the conceptual framework. It became impossible for me to think of how I would teach a lesson or structure a classroom without taking into account the culturally responsive pedagogy and engaged learning specifically. One of my experiences at WSU, that helped me enact the conceptual framework was teaching science in the park. I was able to tailor lessons around learning styles that are not always addressed in the classroom, facilitate engaged learning through hands on exploration, collaborate with my peers to develop lessons, and teach about environmental responsibility.
Through student teaching I have had several opportunities to see what engaged learning looks like and does not look like. This week I taught math. The first day I had the students complete a pre-assessment worksheet. The students complied and completed the worksheet, but they were not engaged in what they were doing. The next lesson I used manipulatives to illustrate the concepts. The students enjoyed the manipulatives, but used them more as toys than learning tools. I reflected on ways to make the learning more focused. I changed the way I passed out the manipulatives to make the system more organized and I chose an activity that was both fun and challenging. This time around I was able to witness engaged learning in action.
I also agree with Carolyn that diversity is the center of our experience here. There are student in my classroom from various cultural and socio-economic backgrounds. The students are also exposed to the culture of their host nation. Like Carolyn, believe that these students are at an advantage to grow up in a diverse setting and participate in cross-cultural experiences at a young age.
Currently, as I look ahead to what I will teach, facilitating engaged learning is on my mind the most. I am constantly brainstorming and reflecting on the ways I can construct lessons and learning experiences that will be meaningful to the students. Ultimately, however, teaching students to see a larger picture and recognize their local and global responsibilities is a passion of mine and something that I hope to touch on consistently in the classroom.
Kelsi
I think that the biggest difference between this student teaching experience and my previous practicums is the amount of diversity in my classroom. This diversity comes in many forms including, but not limited to: religious, racial, and SES. My previous practicums took place in Pullman and rural SW Washington. SW Washington was especially lacking in diversity as nearly all of the students in my honors class were white, Christian, and low SES. Here in Heidelberg, nearly half of my honors students are non-white and they come from a wide range of socio-economic and religious backgrounds.
My social connections at WSU were what prepared me best for the amount of diversity I would find here in Heidelberg. Although WSU is said to be an overwhelmingly white campus that lacks diversity in general, it is significantly more diverse than anything I experienced in my public schools in rural SW Washington. At WSU I was able to interact with and befriend people of many different backgrounds. In interacting with a diverse population of Cougs, I learned how to relate to and connect with people who don’t initially seem to have a lot in common with me. Had I never left SW Washington, I might never have had an adequate level of exposure to diversity in any form. But because of my experiences at WSU, I am comfortable with these differences and have the skills to connect with and nurture nearly 100 students who are each different in a special way. To me, embracing diversity is the most meaningful aspect of the Conceptual Framework because it makes the classroom more interesting, more inviting, and just a better place for learning.
Because we live on base, our students are literally all around us. One of my students lives directly across from us and another lives directly above. We live on a post that has a very high population density (it’s like a giant apartment complex full of families) so I cannot go anywhere without seeing a student. However, I truly enjoy seeing my students outside of the classroom because they are always friendly and it is good for both of us to see that one another have meaningful lives outside of the classroom. Because of this, I am reminded to maintain a professional image at all times so that I can serve as a good role-model for the children in this community.
While at WSU, I worked within the residence halls as an RA. My job required me to live among the people for which I was a leader—just like here at Patrick Henry Village. If the residents I mentored were to see me out in the community (or within our living community) behaving without integrity, I could lose their respect, I could be taken less seriously when enforcing policy, and/or I could even lose my job. As a leader at WSU, I learned how to make wise choices and maintain a professional image for the good of my job, the residents I mentored, and the WSU community as a whole. Because of that experience, I am able to do the same here in Heidelberg.
Fiona,
It is good to hear that your school is doing a German culture day. On Fridays, I always ask my students what they have planned for the weekend. This weekend, Heidelberg is having an annual festival and I was sad to hear that so few students knew what it was and that even fewer were not going to attend. Many of the students come from families that do not leave the base and interact with the Germans and their culture and it breaks my heart. I think the military community should make more positive contributions to the German communities they are a part of and they should get to know the culture and use the language as much as possible. I think we owe that to the Germans as they have proved to be quite hospitable to us despite the fact that we are sometimes "bad neighbors."
From what I have learned from my experiences at WSU I have found that I have incorporated a diverse list of descriptors of conceptual framework. I feel the main factor that has really aided me is the frequency in our field experience. I think that without these real-life experiences one could not be prepared for the classroom. I would not have been able to actually see the extent of how different each child is, regardless of where they are from.
In my classroom, my cooperating teacher and I have begun to notice how each of our children “tick” (some not so much). Knowing what type of learner a child is can really help teachers understand them and cater their teaching to give that child the best possible education. For example, in our classroom there is a child with an IEP who often does not participate. If he does participate, many times he will start to hide under his desk and cry. Through persistence, Chaun and I have found that this child is a very spatial learner. So since Math was his main worry and I was teaching it every day, I made sure to connect the math we were doing with a visual piece. When working with the Distributive Property of Multiplication over Addition, I presented the information as a grid. Many of the students struggled with this. Except that one student who usually never participated, who was able to understand it more completely than even I did! Seeing this real life example of how working with a child’s learning style has really led me to believe that this is one of the most important theories I have learned at WSU.
From Washington State, I have brought a much better understanding of how to incorporate in my lessons diverse teaching. This does not always mean teaching about different cultures but teaching to different learners as I mentioned before. In an average DOD’s classroom and especially mine, you will come across a wide range of cultural backgrounds, attitudes and learning styles. By taking what I have learned and observed during my time in the Education department I can effectively benefit each student’s learning.
One important factor that has surprisingly helped me to implement what I have learned is the involvement of the parents. Many of the parents from my classroom I have met and all of them have been so supportive of not only their children but of myself as well. I don’t think that if I didn’t have this support and understanding I would not be able to apply what I have learned at WSU. I have seen in the past and at other schools parents being very resistant to thinking that their child is different or learns differently than their peers in the classroom. From this community I have not encountered this at all and they all seem to except that every child is unique and needs just as unique instruction. I have had several parents thank my teacher and I for trying different approaches with their children because they have seen the effect it has on them.
I feel that with Washington State’s concept framework and with many field experiences I have been prepared to teach in the classroom I am in today and someday, a classroom of my own.
I agree with Melissa in that the students at WSU are much more diverse than what they are made out to be. We are said to be a mainly white school, yet I feel that although many of us are white, we do not come from the same backgrounds. While at WSU, I had a teacher that said to us, "you are talking like a bunch of white anglos." Looking around, we were almost all entirely all white we all came from different parts of the world, came from different family backgrounds and were all different people entirely. I think of this teacher when I am in my classroom. Although my children may or may not look and act alike, they are all very unique. They each have a diverse outlook on life and learning and as teachers we must cater to that. No matter how we think they should learn.
Kelsi,
I can really relate to your experience with hands on learning, especially your example of your math lessons. I have had similar experiences with hands on learning. When I do not have the kids engaged it is very obvious that there is little learning taking place. When I implement hands on activities and have them use their bodies it is obvious there is more learning and understanding taking place. I have found it to be a trial and error type of thing on many occasions. Sometimes the kids love it and sometimes it seems like they are uninterested. These are the times I need to think quickly and adjust my plans. It sounds like you did a good job of seeing the problems and making adjustments :)
It has really given me a sense of your experiences (and your passion regarding the diversity of your students and your goals of meeting their needs)to read through your comments. I easily understand how your preparation has been affected by coursework, but also by experiences in Pullman (both with your fellow students, as an RA, etc.) Education surrounds us and we learn from many sources.
The newest part of the conceptual framework is our attention to sustainability and the environment. I'm wondering what attention you see to these issues in Germany. Any insights there?
I'm thrilled that many of you are focusing on engaged learning. I nearly fell asleep in a meeting today where I was "talked to" for nearly 2 hours. I can barely remember what the speakers were saying, and I certainly didn't learn much that will "stick."
Thanks, too, for keeping the journal entries coming. It will facilitate our supervision by having some context for your experiences.
Cori
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